Al-Baqarah: (165) And there are some people...

Know that when the Almighty and Exalted God established the Oneness of God (Tawhid) with overwhelming and decisive proofs, He followed it by condemning what opposes Tawhid. This is because condemning the opposite confirms the excellence of a thing.

Thus, the poet said: "By opposites, things become clear." They also say that a blessing is unknown until it is lost, at which point it is recognized. People do not know the value of health until they fall ill, and when health returns, they recognize its worth. The same applies to all blessings. For this reason, God Almighty followed the verse indicating Tawhid with this verse. Herein lie several issues:

Issue 1: The Meaning of Nidd (Rival/Equal)

The term Nidd (plural Andād) means a rival or an equal in dispute. We have already clarified its reality in His saying at the beginning of this Surah: {So do not set up rivals for Allah when you know} (Al-Baqarah: 22).

There are differing opinions regarding what is meant by Andād (rivals):

1. The Idols: They are the idols they took as gods to bring them nearer to God as a means of approach (zulfa). They hoped for benefit and harm from them, directed their requests to them, made vows to them, and offered sacrifices to them. This is the view of most commentators. On this basis, the idols are rivals to each other (i.e., similar to each other), not rivals to God, or the meaning is that they are rivals to God according to their corrupt assumptions.
2. The Leaders/Masters: They are the masters whom they obeyed, permitting what God had forbidden because of their obedience, and forbidding what God had permitted. This is narrated from Al-Suddi. Those who hold this view favor it over the first for several reasons:
   • The pronoun in {they love them as they love Allah} refers to rational beings (humans).
   • It is unlikely that they loved the idols as they loved God, given that they knew the idols could neither harm nor benefit.
   • God Almighty mentions immediately after this verse: {When those who were followed disown those who followed them, and they see the punishment} (Al-Baqarah: 166). This is only appropriate for those who took men as rivals and equals to God, to whom they pledged the same reverence and submission that believers pledge to God.
3. The Sufis and Gnostics' View: This view holds that Nidd is anything that occupies your heart other than God Almighty, which you have made a rival to God in your heart. This is what is meant by His saying: {Have you seen the one who takes his desire as his god?} (Al-Furqan: 43).

Regarding His saying: {they love them as they love Allah}

Know that the intended meaning is not the love of their very essence (dhāt), so there must be an omitted object. The meaning is that they love their customs, or approaching them and submitting to them, or all of the above.

There are three opinions regarding {as they love Allah}:

1. It means "as they love God."
2. It means "as is obligatory for them to love God."
3. It means "as the believers love God."

This difference in interpretation arises from whether they acknowledged God or not.

• Those who say they acknowledged God while taking rivals interpret it as "as they love God."
• Those who say they did not know their Lord interpret the verse based on the other two meanings: either "as is obligatory for them" or "as the believers love God."

The first opinion is closer because {they love them as they love Allah} refers back to the people previously mentioned. The apparent meaning of {as they love Allah} implies an established love for God within them. Thus, it is as if God clarified in the preceding verse that the Deity is One and pointed out the proofs for it, then recounted the statement of those who associate partners with Him, which implies their acknowledgment of God Almighty.

Objection: It is impossible for an intelligent person to love idols as they love God, because by necessity of reason, they know these idols are stones that neither benefit nor harm, nor do they hear or see or comprehend. They admitted that this universe has a Wise Creator and Designer, which is why God Almighty said: {And if you asked them, "Who created the heavens and the earth?" they would surely say, "Allah"} (Az-Zumar: 38). Given this belief, how can their love for those idols be like their love for God Almighty? Furthermore, God recounts that they said: {We only worship them that they may bring us nearer to Allah in station} (Az-Zumar: 3). If this is the case, the primary goal is seeking God's pleasure, so how can love be equalized with this statement?

Answer: His saying {they love them as they love Allah} means in obedience to them and reverence for them. On this interpretation, the equality in love does not contradict what you mentioned.

Regarding His saying: {But those who believed are stronger in love for Allah}

Herein lie several issues:

There is no dispute among the Ummah regarding the application of this term (love), that a servant may love God Almighty. The Quran affirms this, as in this verse and in {He loves them, and they love Him} (Al-Ma'idah: 54). Likewise, the narrations confirm it.

It is reported that Abraham (peace be upon him) said to the Angel of Death when he came to take his soul: "Have you ever seen a beloved cause the death of his beloved?" God revealed to him: "Have you ever seen a beloved who dislikes meeting his beloved?" He then said: "O Angel of Death, now take my soul."

A Bedouin came to the Prophet (peace be upon him) and asked: "O Messenger of Allah, when is the Hour?" He replied: "What have you prepared for it?" He said: "I have not prepared much prayer or fasting, except that I love Allah and His Messenger." The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "A person will be with whomever he loves." Anas said: "I have never seen the Muslims rejoice more over anything after Islam than they rejoiced over that."

It is reported that Jesus (peace be upon him) passed by three men whose bodies were emaciated and complexions changed. He asked them: "What has brought you to this state?" They replied: "Fear of the Fire." He said: "It is incumbent upon God to grant security to the fearful." He then left them for three others, who were even more emaciated and changed. He asked them: "What has brought you to this station?" They said: "Longing for Paradise." He said: "It is incumbent upon God to grant you what you hope for." He then left them for three others, who were even more emaciated and changed, their faces shining like mirrors of light. He asked: "How have you reached this degree?" They replied: "Through the love of God." The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "You are the closest to God on the Day of Resurrection."

According to Al-Suddi, the nations will be called on the Day of Resurrection by their prophets, and it will be said: "O nation of Moses," "O nation of Jesus," "O nation of Muhammad," except for the lovers among them, for they will be called: "O friends of Allah." In some books, it is mentioned: "My servant, I truly love you, so by My right upon you, be loving toward Me."

Although the Ummah agrees on the application of this term, they differ on its meaning:

• The Majority of Theologians (Mutakallimūn): They hold that love is a type of volition (irādah), and volition is only related to what is permissible (jā'izāt). Therefore, it is impossible for love to be directed towards the Essence of God Almighty and His Attributes. When we say, "We love God," it means we love obedience to God and serving Him, or we love His reward and His benevolence.
• The Gnostics ('Ārifūn): They say that the servant may love God Almighty for His own sake (li-dhātihi). Love for His service or His reward is a lower degree.

Their Proof: They argue that we find that pleasure (ladhdhah) is loved for its own sake, and perfection (kamāl) is also loved for its own sake.

• Pleasure: If we are asked why we strive, we say: to acquire wealth. If asked why we seek wealth, we say: to obtain food and drink. If asked why we seek food and drink, we say: to attain pleasure and repel pain. If asked why we seek pleasure and repel pain, we say: this is uncaused, because if everything sought were for the sake of something else, it would lead to either infinite regress or a vicious circle, both of which are impossible. Therefore, it must terminate in something sought for its own sake. Since this is established, we know that pleasure is sought for its own sake, and pain is sought to be repelled for its own sake, not for another reason.
• Perfection: We love the Prophets and the Saints simply because they are described with attributes of perfection. When we hear an account of a brave person like Rustam or Isfandiyar, and learn about their bravery, our hearts incline toward them, sometimes to the extent of spending great wealth to honor them, or even risking life.

The fact that pleasure is loved for its own sake does not negate that perfection is loved for its own sake. Given this, those who interpret the love of God as the love of His obedience or His reward are those who recognized that pleasure is loved for its own sake but did not recognize that perfection is loved for its own sake.

The Gnostics, who say that God is loved for His Essence and for His own sake, are those to whom it has been revealed that perfection is loved for its own sake. This is because the most perfect of all perfect beings is the Truth, may He be exalted. Due to the necessity of His existence, He is independent of everything else, and the perfection of everything else is derived from Him. He is the most perfect of all perfect beings in knowledge and power. If we love a learned man for his perfection in knowledge, a brave man for his perfection in courage, and an ascetic for his freedom from unbecoming actions, how can we not love God? All knowledge relative to His knowledge is like non-existence, all power relative to His power is like non-existence, and all creatures' freedom from defects relative to His is like non-existence. Therefore, it is certain that the beloved reality is God Almighty, and He is loved for His Essence and for His own sake, whether others love Him or not.

When you grasp the subtlety in this chapter, know that the servant has no way to perceive God Almighty initially. Rather, unless he reflects upon His created realm, he cannot reach this station. Consequently, whoever has a more complete insight into the subtleties of God's wisdom and power in creation will have a more complete knowledge of His perfection, and thus a more complete love for Him. Since there is no end to the degrees of the servant's realization of the subtleties of God's wisdom, there is no end to the degrees of the servants' love for the majesty of God's presence.

Then, another state occurs: when the servant frequently contemplates the subtleties of God's wisdom, his ascent in the station of loving God increases. When this happens frequently, it becomes a cause for the love of God Almighty to dominate the servant's heart, immersing it, similar to water droplets falling on solid rock; though gentle, they penetrate hard stones. When the love of God penetrates the heart, the heart takes on its quality, and its familiarity with it intensifies. The stronger this familiarity, the stronger the aversion to anything else, because turning to anything other than Him distracts from turning to Him, and what prevents the presence of the Beloved is detestable. Thus, the love of God and aversion to all else alternate in the heart, and each strengthens the other, until the heart becomes averse to everything except God Almighty. This aversion necessitates turning away from all but God, and turning away necessitates annihilation from all but God, so that this heart becomes illuminated by the lights of holiness, brightened by the lights of the realm of infallibility, annihilated from the attachments related to the realm of contingency. This station is the highest degree, and it has no analogy in this world except intense passion for anything whatsoever. You see merchants engrossed in acquiring wealth forgetting their hunger and thirst when absorbed in safeguarding their money. If this is conceivable in such a base station, how can it be deemed impossible when contemplating the majesty of the Eternal Presence?

Know that longing can only be conceived for something that has been perceived in one aspect but not in another. If something has not been perceived at all, one does not long for it; if one has neither seen nor heard a description of a person, it is inconceivable to long for them. If one perceived their perfection entirely, one would not long for them.

Longing for the Beloved occurs in two ways:

1. If one sees the Beloved and then they depart, one longs to complete the mental image through sight.
2. If one sees the face of the Beloved but not their hair or other beauties, one longs for what has not yet been revealed.

Both ways are conceivable for God Almighty and are necessarily incumbent upon all Gnostics. What has become clear to the Gnostics of divine matters, however clear it may be, is mixed with the impurities of mental representations (khayālāt), as representations in this world never cease mimicking and symbolizing, and these are the perceptions for spiritual knowledge. Complete manifestation is only achieved in the Hereafter. This necessitates the occurrence of longing in this world. This is the first type of longing, which has become clear.

The second type is that divine matters are infinite, and only some aspects are revealed to each servant, while infinite matters remain hidden. When the Gnostic knows that what is hidden from his intellect is greater than what is present, he will continuously long to know it.

The longing of the first type ends in the Hereafter through what is called seeing, meeting, and witnessing, and it is inconceivable in this world. As for the longing of the second type, it seems to have no end, as its limit is the revelation in the Hereafter of God's Majesty, His Attributes, and the wisdom in His actions, which are infinite. Detailed knowledge of the infinite is impossible.

You have understood the reality of longing for God Almighty. Know that this longing is sweet because when the servant is ascending, due to the alternation of finding and deprivation, union and separation, he experiences pains mixed with pleasures, and pleasures surrounded by deprivation and loss. This type of pleasure seems to be unique to humans, as the angels already possess their perfections, and beasts are not prepared for it. Humans, however, oscillate between the lowliness and the loftiness.

• The Theologians: They say that their love for God is in two aspects:
  1. The reverence, praise, glorification, and worship that emanates from them is pure from polytheism and inappropriate beliefs, unlike the love of others.
  2. Their love for God is accompanied by hope for reward, desire for a high station, and fear of punishment and the path to escape it. Whoever worships and glorifies God to this extent has a stronger love for God.
• The Gnostics: They say that the believers are those who knew God to the extent of human capacity. We have demonstrated that love is a necessary consequence of gnosis ('irfān). Therefore, the more complete their gnosis, the stronger their love must be.

Objection: How can it be said that the love of believers for God is stronger when we see Hindus performing arduous acts of worship that no Muslim performs, and they do this only for God, even killing themselves out of love for God?

Answer (in several ways):

1. Believers supplicate only to God, unlike polytheists who turn to God in need, but when the need passes, they return to their rivals. God says: {But when they ride on ships, they call upon Allah, sincerely [and exclusively] for Him in religion} (Al-'Ankabut: 6), and so on. The believer does not turn away from God in ease or hardship, in distress or comfort, whereas the disbeliever may turn away from his Lord. Thus, the believer's love is stronger.
2. Whoever loves another accepts their decree and does not interfere in their domain. Those ignorant people killed themselves without His permission. Believers, however, may kill themselves by His permission, such as in Jihad.
3. When a person is afflicted with severe torment, they cannot engage in knowing the Lord; thus, what they did is invalid.
4. Ibn Abbas said: The polytheists used to worship an idol, and if they saw something better, they would abandon that one and turn to worshipping the better one.
5. Believers affirm the Oneness of their Lord, while the disbelievers worship idols alongside the primary idol, which diminishes the love for the One. The love for the One God encompasses all love.

Regarding His saying: {And if those who wronged could see, when they see the punishment, that all strength belongs to Allah entirely}

Herein lie several issues:

There are several points of discussion regarding the reading of this verse:

First Point of Discussion (The Verb 'To See'):

• Nafi' and Ibn Umar read it as {Wa law tarā} (with a tā' dotted from above), addressing the Prophet (peace be upon him), meaning: "If you, O Muhammad, could see those who wronged."
• The rest read it as {Wa law yurā} (with a yā' dotted from below), as a report about those previously mentioned, meaning: "If those who wronged themselves by taking rivals could see..." Some argue this latter reading is preferable because the Prophet (PBUH) and the Muslims already know the extent of the punishment the disbelievers will witness on the Day of Resurrection. The ones being warned in this verse are those who do not know this, so the action must be attributed to them.

Second Point of Discussion (The Verb 'They See'):

• Ibn 'Amir read {yarawna} (with a yā' prefixed and dammah) as transitive, supported by His saying: {Thus Allah will show them their deeds as regrets to them}.
• The rest read {yarawna} (with a yā' prefixed and fatḥah) as intransitive, attributing the seeing to themselves.

Third Point of Discussion (The Particle 'An'):

• Some reciters read {anna} (with a kasrah on the alif) as an independent clause starter.
• The Seven Reciters read {anna} (with a fatḥah on the alif).

Fourth Point of Discussion (Combining Readings): Since {yurā alladhīna ẓalamū} is read sometimes with tā' (addressing the Prophet) and sometimes with yā' (reporting), and {anna al-qūwata} is read sometimes with fatḥah and sometimes with kasrah, there are four possibilities:

1. Reading with yā' (reporting) and fatḥah on an: The meaning is: If those who wronged could see the severity of God's punishment and His power, they would not have taken rivals besides Him. The answer to the conditional law (if) is omitted, which is common in the Quran (e.g., {And if you could see when they are made to stand before the Fire} (Al-An'am: 27)). This omission is considered more eloquent and grand because the addressee's mind goes to every kind of threat, making the fear greater as if that specific threat were realized.
2. Reading with yā' (reporting) and kasrah on inna: The meaning is: If those who wronged could see their own helplessness while witnessing God's punishment, they would say, "Indeed, all strength belongs to Allah."
3. Reading with tā' (addressing) and fatḥah on anna (The reading of Nafi' and Ibn 'Amir): Al-Farra' suggests a repetition of sight: "If you, O Muhammad, could see those who wronged when they see the punishment, [you would see] that all strength belongs to Allah entirely."
4. Reading with tā' (addressing) and kasrah on inna: The meaning is: "If you, O Muhammad, could see those who wronged when they see the punishment, you would say, 'All strength belongs to Allah entirely.'" This is also a clear and good interpretation.

Objection: How can His saying {And if those who wronged could see} (future/conditional) be used alongside {when they see the punishment} (using idh, which typically refers to the past)?

Answer: It is phrased in the past tense because the occurrence of the Hour is near. God says: {And the command of the Hour is not but like a blink of an eye or nearer} (An-Nahl: 77), and {The Hour is near} (Ash-Shura: 17). Everything that is near to happening is treated as if it has already happened. Based on this interpretation, God says: {And the inhabitants of Paradise will call out} (Al-A'raf: 44). Similarly, the caller says, "The prayer has been established," before the prohibition of prayer is enacted, due to its proximity. Many examples of this usage exist in the Quran, such as: {And if you could see when they are made to stand} (Al-An'am: 27), {And if you could see when the wrongdoers are in the throes of death} (Saba': 31), {And if you could see when they are terrified} (Saba': 51), {And if you could see when the disbelievers are in the throes of death} (Al-Anfal: 50).

{When those who were followed disown those who followed them, and they see the punishment, and all ties are cut off from them. * And those who followed will say, "If only we had another turn [to the world] so we could disown them as they have disowned us from us." Thus Allah will show them their deeds as regrets to them, and they will not be able to exit the Fire.}